Cat and Mouse
by TimeGuardian
Summary: Lady Cassandra decides on revenge against International Rescue in her own twisted way. With Jeff and Lady Penelope countering her moves, who will win this twisted game? Movieverse with some TV elements.
1. Chapter 1

_**Cat and Mouse**__  
A Thunderbirds Movieverse fanfic  
by Timeguardian_

Chapter One

Jeff Tracy sat at the activated command and control center in his study and worried.

Four hours ago, his boys had returned from the scene of a vicious wildfire that had trapped thousands of people in a theme park – all except for Scott and John who were supposed to be riding back in Thunderbird One.

Another distress call had come in on their way back from the scene and after talking it over with Gordon on Thunderbird Five, Scott and John decided to tackle the situation. It seemed like a simple one – two hikers boxed in by a landslide. They had climbing equipment in Thunderbird One if it was needed, but the plan was to extract the hikers out by lowering ropes and lifting them out of the situation.

On the far wall of the study, one of the video screens held a live feed from Thunderbird Five. On the screen, Gordon Tracy was a hive of activity as he worked between panels and checking sensors.

Gordon contacted him when he heard nothing from Scott and John and they did not respond to any of his efforts to reach them. Jeff ordered him to double check the communications and sensors and was waiting on him to finish.

Five minutes passed as Gordon did his checks and was silent for nearly a minute more before he looked up from his work and declared. "I'm sorry dad. There's still no sign of them and no answer to anything I've sent out."

Jeff looked up at the screen. "There's no sign of Thunderbird One's signature at all, Gordon?"

Gordon shook his head emphatically. "None at all, dad. The last reading I have was when Scott, John, and the others left the scene of that wildfire. There's also no sign now of those hikers that radioed in – it looks like that distress call was fake."

Jeff got to his feet. The implications were all there. With Brains' help, he was the one to ensure that each Thunderbird vehicle had a distinctive signature that would transmit on a special frequency that Thunderbird Five could track in case of emergency. For that to be blocked or disabled meant something serious happened to Thunderbird One.

Another thought quickly came to his mind. "What about their tele-coms?"

"No go on that either - that was the first thing I checked on when they were overdue in checking in with me."

Jeff sighed. Frustration and worry churned at his gut. He was a man of action but without a direction - how could they even begin to find Scott and John?

* * *

_Twelve hours later -_

Lady Penelope came downstairs feeling refreshed from her bubble bath. Dressed in pink cropped pants and white blouse, her first thought was to go out and relax in her rose garden.

It was four months ago since she encountered any major action that called upon her services as an agent. It was not entirely an unwelcome situation, but despite what she tried to do to put it out of her mind, Penelope's mind kept returning to the events of four months ago.

A rouge agent by the name of Lady Cassandra Worthington was sinking cargo ships for personal gain. When Lady Penelope tried to investigate, Cassandra captured her and continued a reign of terror.

It took the efforts of International Rescue to put a stop to Cassandra's efforts, but in the end she escaped. This irked Lady Penelope to no end, despite being injured during their last encounter. _I should have stopped her._

During her recovery time, Lady Penelope made it a point to keep an eye on the media and her sources. It was because of those to begin with that she got on Lady Cassandra's trail – so far though, those efforts amounted to nil.

She heard the gentle tinkle of the front door bell as she entered the main entryway. Seconds later, Parker appeared from the sitting room and went to answer the front door.

Lady Penelope stretched her arms overhead – her rose garden sounded like the perfect place to relax and clear her mind.

She heard the front door close and soon Parker was at her side, handing her a thick envelope. "A packet has arrived for you via special courier, milady."

Lady Penelope took the envelope from Parker. "Thank you, Parker. If you need me, I will be in the rose garden for the rest of the afternoon."

"Yes, milady."

Parker left her side, and she turned her attention to the envelope. The front of the envelope bore the name of a popular shipping company, the address field filled out in neatly printed block letters – no clue there.

She took the envelope over to the table she had in the entryway, and grabbed for the dagger she had there. A gift from the German ambassador, it served her better as a letter opener more than anything else.

After carefully slitting the top of the envelope open, Penelope withdrew a sheet of paper, a photo, and what looked like two watches. Setting the rest of the contents on the table, she took a look at the paper.

The words on the paper chilled her to the bone as she read them: _The game is not over yet. I have been watching and waiting - my time is now. Come find me if you can._

The distinctive scrawl beneath the brief note was Lady Cassandra's signature – Lady Penelope could recognize it anywhere.

Eyes wide, she turned and picked up the photo from the table. It was of Scott and John - both were heavily bound by rope to chairs and both of them seemed to be unconscious. At the center of the photo stood Cassandra, arms crossed and with a smirk that seemed to scream _come find me if you can_.

_Maybe this is a trick – a joke. _

Lady Penelope's hopes on that aspect were dashed when she looked at the watches resting on the table, realizing that they were tele-coms, only used by members of International Rescue. The meaning of them being included in the envelope was crystal clear – Cassandra wanted her to know that Scott and John were taken hostage.

Lady Cassandra had no regard for anyone or anything but herself. Now Scott and John were in danger because of a mad woman's need for revenge. This time, there could be no mistakes – Lady Cassandra had to be stopped once and for all.

Dropping the letter and photo on the table, Lady Penelope shouted. "Parker!"

Parker came back into the entryway quickly. "Yes, milady?"

"Prepare FAB-1 for immediate departure."

"Right away, milady."

As Parker headed towards the garage, Lady Penelope walked into her sitting room, and grabbed for her special portable phone. Reluctantly Lady Penelope dialed the number she knew by heart and slowly walked back into the entryway and back to the table. She picked up the photo again as her connection was made. "Jeff? It's me. I have news that you are not going to like."

* * *

_Lady Cassandra was first introduced in my story 'The Dead Zone.' She has decided to strike back in the worst way imaginable. As always, standard story disclaimers apply – not sure how quickly I can get the updates out, but I promise to try and make it worth your while if you stick around. _

_More later,_

_Timeguardian_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Cat and Mouse**__  
A Thunderbirds Movieverse fanfic  
by Timeguardian_

Chapter Two

There was no time and no warning. Minutes after Gordon alerted him that Thunderbird One along with Scott and John were missing, they received a distress call. A flash flood in Hawaii threatened to sweep a whole town off of the map, and it was all that the local authorities could do to hold back the water.

Reluctantly, Jeff ordered the Thunderbirds into action and suited up himself – his boys would need all the help they could get.

It was about twelve hours later before they managed to divert the floodwaters harmlessly away and ensured that any resulting mudslides would not endanger any lives. Once they got confirmation from the local authorities that they could take it from there, Jeff ordered his boys home on the double.

Now Jeff slumped in the chair on Thunderbird Two next to the pilot's chair, in which Virgil sat.

His mind was turning what he knew over in his mind, which wasn't much – Scott, John, and Thunderbird One were missing. In-between his musings, Jeff fought back the urge to yawn – he couldn't remember the last time he slept.

Virgil gave him a sympathetic glance. "Why don't you get a cat nap in, dad?"

The temptation was there, but then a vibration at Jeff's side drove out all thoughts of sleep. Fishing into the side pocket of his flight suit, Jeff pulled out his portable satellite phone. He didn't think to check the readout on the phone to check who was calling him, but was clued in immediately when Lady Penelope's voice came through quickly. "Jeff? It's me. I have news that you are not going to like."

Her voice sounded distant and angry. It was a rare thing to hear her bothered so much, and it worried him. Jeff clenched the phone tightly. "Penny, what is it?"

This time it was nearly a minute before she continued. "Lady Cassandra – she has taken Scott and John hostage."

Shock came with realization. They made a dangerous enemy out of her when they stopped Lady Cassandra's plans all those months ago. Jeff swallowed hard before he asked his next question. "Do you know where?"

"No, but I am on my way to your island now with a packet she sent me. There may be clues in it that we can use."

It was a start. There wasn't much more he could hope for at this point. "We're returning from a rescue and we'll be back long before you arrive. We will have things ready for your arrival. Are you all right, Penny?"

Jeff knew it was a risky question to ask. While she was recovering from her injuries after her encounter with Lady Cassandra, Jeff made it a point to keep in touch with her, or at least he tried to. Each conversation was awkwardly brief. Lady Penelope seemed distracted at best, but he knew that he would need her help to take Lady Cassandra down.

"I'm fine, Jeff, and I will be even better when we take her down. I'll get to your island at maximum speed," she stated with determination.

The connection abruptly ended, and Jeff quickly pocketed his phone back into the pocket of his flight suit.

A million thoughts and plans whirled through his head as he asked. "Virgil?"

Virgil looked over at him. "Dad?"

It took Jeff a moment to find the words. "Maximum speed. Get us home – Lady Penelope has a lead on where Scott and John are. She's meeting us there."

He watched his son's eyes widen before turning back to the controls. "FAB, setting to maximum speed and heading home."

* * *

Scott Tracy had one hell of a headache. He was debating whether or not to open his eyes, all the while taking stock in what happened to him.

The last thing he remembered, due to the narrow path that was blocked for the hikers they were trying to help, he decided to land Thunderbird One to get them a better vantage point due to their overhead view being blocked by an overhanging rock. John made mention that where they were did not exactly match the distress call they received, and then – they were attacked.

Scott's eyes flew open.

The light around him was dim for which he was thankful. From what little he could determine, he seemed to be in a control room of some sort. He was sitting upright in some sort of chair and a quick look down confirmed that he was tied to the chair with his hands behind his back.

There was a doorway at the far wall, which looked to be guarded. The thug guarding it looked overly muscle bound and Scott did not fancy his chances, even if he was free of the chair. On the same wall there was a view screen.

"Well, well. Look who is awake."

Scott whipped his head around wildly at the sound of the distinctly female voice. Something about it seemed weirdly familiar.

He then heard the clack of high heels on a hard floor from behind him. When the woman came into view, two distinct thoughts came to him: This was Lady Cassandra and there was no sign of his brother anywhere in the room.

Scott forced his voice to be as calm as possible, under the circumstances. "What's your game, lady? What have you done with my teammate?"

Lady Cassandra leaned over and patted his head. "That's Lady Cassandra to you, Mister Field Commander. Show some respect."

He wasn't sure how much she knew, and Scott was determined to keep any knowledge discovery to a minimum. "I asked you what you have done with my teammate."

A cackle emanated from her that grated on Scott's last nerve.

Standing up, Cassandra turned with a flourish and hit a button stationed on a panel in the nearby wall. The view screen on the far wall flared to life.

Scott watched as she idly played with her lengthy red hair, which she had tied into a low ponytail and draped over her shoulder.

"You see, I mainly wanted you," Cassandra explained, "you were the one who openly challenged me before, after all. Having your teammate with you is a plus. You see, people who openly challenge me do not last long – just ask Lady Penelope."

Scott took in the surroundings from the feed showing on the view screen. "That is where – we landed."

"Of course…I had to lure you somewhere where I could have complete control of the situation. Even with all of the watching and the waiting, the best I could do with my scientists was to monitor you communications."

Scott's eyes widened. "You were listening to us again?"

A smile curled Lady Cassandra's lips while she confessed. "Not quite – but I have been able to track your rescues from the distress calls themselves. I have had men at each of your rescues for the past two months. Oh, there you are questioning yourself – they had orders to stay in the background, you wouldn't have seen them. They reported back your habits, your 'visible' practices – that allowed me to come up with a scheme."

The pieces of her plan slid neatly into place for Scott. "That distress call was faked."

"Exactly. And to think, you landed your Thunderbird craft because you two wanted a closer look at the path where those poor hikers were trapped."

At least one of his questions was answered. "You mean you didn't–"

Cassandra waved her hands dismissively. "Of course not. Your precious Thunderbird craft is intact. I haven't broken through ALL of International Rescue's defenses – yet. The area I chose for the rescue favors me, though. It has a high concentration of magnetic interference, so even if your 'teammates' come looking, it will be a long time before they find you. Still, this is a game that needs an end. I invited Penelope to join us, so I am sure she will drag the whole of International Rescue with her. However, while we wait, we shall watch the lovely view screen and see what fate is in store for your 'teammate', Mister Field Commander."

Scott looked at the unfolding events on the monitor with dread. There was no telling what was going to happen next.

That is what scared him the most.

* * *

_The lady scares me, and she's my creation. What's she got in store for John? Find out – next chapter._

_Till Later,_

_Timeguardian_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Cat and Mouse**__  
A Thunderbirds Movieverse fanfic  
by Timeguardian_

Chapter Three

"Look, the Thunderbird is awake."

John Tracy groaned at the sound of the foreign voice. It sounded British, and yet he couldn't seem to remember much about how he came to be there. The last thing he remembered was being surrounded by men with guns after he and Scott got out of Thunderbird One to check out a rescue situation.

He opened his eyes to find that he was on the ground looking up at the sky. Around him was a similar landscape he remembered when they initially got out of Thunderbird One. A forest was on one side of his position while the other side was rockier and had trees and mountains in the distance.

Still, there were three things that bothered John about this situation: there were two men standing over him with machine guns, there was no sign of Thunderbird One anywhere around him, and what was worse was that there was no sign of Scott. For the moment, his priority would have to be to get information.

John groaned as he pushed himself to his feet. The two men that had him at gunpoint started laughing.

"What are you two chuckleheads laughing at?" he finally blurted out.

John was surprised that they backed up, allowing him to stand. They still held their guns in his direction, but one of them stopped laughing long enough to utter one word. "You."

"I didn't think I was so amusing."

Now the other man stopped laughing to declare. "You're not. You see, we were waiting for you to wake up so that we could 'hunt' you, as it were."

Hunt? He didn't like the sound of that. John glanced between the two of them before rubbing the back of his head. His thinking seemed to be clear and his head wasn't throbbing too painfully. _Just my luck to escape a serious concussion only to be held at gunpoint, _he thought sourly. "Dare I ask who has given you permission to use me for sport?"

The two men glanced between each other before the first man shrugged his shoulders, "Eh, you'll soon be dead anyway. Lady Cassandra paid us well to see that you were 'well taken care of' as it were."

John was on Thunderbird Five during the time that Lady Cassandra's wave of crime was stopped by International Resuce. He kept up with what little press coverage there was about the ships being attacked and saw what few pictures the media had of Lady Cassandra.

He looked between the two thugs and gauged his chances. Both men were large, muscle-bound, and armed to the teeth with personal firearms located in shoulder holsters along with the machine guns they were directing his way. No doubt that he would be dead in no time flat if he tried to take them down directly, but John decided to gauge his chances. "What if I take issue with being treated like a hunted animal?"

The first man smiled. "Well then, we would shoot you where you stand. It's not like you can call out for help anyway. Lady Cassandra picked this area especially for the levels of magnetic interference – we even took that fancy communicator thing off of your wrist as well."

John stared at them hard before looking down at his bare wrist. Lady Cassandra seemed to have found out a lot about them over the past few months – it was an unsettling thought to say the least. He currently had no way of calling for help and with the rescue being no longer a rescue, his priority for the moment was to stay alive.

_Here goes nothing_. "Then I make my choice – now."

John broke into a full run and changed his heading for the group of mountains that he spotted in the distance from his current position. His only hope was to gain some elevation and maybe find a safe way out of the area.

A gunshot whizzed by his ear. John leaned forward and did his best to not travel in a straight line as he ran onward.

* * *

Scott saw the events unfold on the view screen – when John ran off and the two thugs fired at his brother, it was all he could do to keep his anger in check. It was useless anyway, considering that he tried his bonds more than once and found that whoever tied them did a solid job.

He glanced up at Lady Cassandra, who at this point was smiling as she looked at the view screen. "Is that all we are to you? Entertainment?"

"Of course not, Mister Field Commander. You two are also bait, don't forget that."

* * *

Jeff stood outside and watched as FAB-1 maneuvered in close and docked at the special place he designated for Lady Penelope for whenever she came to visit.

Minutes later, he watched as Parker helped her out of FAB-1 and approached him. Without a word, Parker handed him what looked like a large packet.

Jeff glanced at her. "Is this the packet you told me about, Penny?"

Lady Penelope nodded. "It's not a pretty sight, Jeff. She even sent back their tele-coms."

Looking down at the packet in his hands, Jeff felt a surge of hope as an idea came to him. "Then Lady Cassandra has made a big mistake. Let's get to Brains' lab and pray that Lady Cassandra didn't alter the tele-coms in any way."

* * *

_A short one, I know, but real life is intruding for the moment and I don't want to leave John's fate in the dark too much. I'll be back as soon as I can._

_Till later,_

_Timeguardian_


	4. Chapter 4

**_Cat and Mouse_**_  
A Thunderbirds Movieverse fanfic  
by Timeguardian_

Chapter Four

Lady Penelope dutifully followed Jeff through his labyrinth of a house and through a downward passage that emptied out into Brains' lab.

Admittedly, she was distracted - her thoughts were about the things that she saw when she opened the packet. _The picture…the tele-coms._

She was brought back to the present when they stopped at the main worktable in the space. Jeff set the packet on the table and grabbed for a portable computer that was on one corner of the table.

He started talking as he powered up the computer. "I regret allowing Brains to leave for a scientific conference a few days ago, but it can't be helped. I managed to reach him earlier after you contacted me - he will be back here in about eight hours. In the meantime, we need to move on this."

A large monitor mounted above the table flared to life as Lady Penelope watched him type in commands and bring up a program.

He moved back over to the packet and took out all the items.

Lady Penelope watched as Jeff took a long look at the note and picture that were included before focusing on the two tele-coms.

Her anticipation was getting the best of her. "Jeff?"

There was a slight hitch in his voice as he examined each of the tele-coms. "I don't see any evidence of tampering – we can work with this. Brains made sure each tele-com had built in memory and GPS capabilities along with a specific transmitting signature to differentiate them."

Penelope felt a sense of admiration. "Clever - we can track their movements then."

Jeff nodded as he moved back over to the computer and brought up a communication program and made a familiar call. "Tracy Island to Thunderbird Five – come in Gordon."

On the monitor screen a large view of the main deck of Thunderbird Five came into view. In the middle of it all, Gordon sat. To Penelope, he looked like he had been without sleep for quite a while but when Gordon looked at them, his eyes brightened slightly. "Thunderbird Five here – dad, is there any word on Scott or John?"

Jeff looked over at Lady Penelope. "We may have been provided a lead, thanks to Lady Penelope. We have Scott and John's tele-coms."

"Dad-"

Jeff held up a hand, stopping the questions he knew were coming. "Gordon, please, time is not on our side here. Embedded in the comm programs up there should be a scanner that can pick up on the tele-coms, their signatures, and their GPS history. Get it online and scan the two tele-coms we have."

Gordon nodded. "John showed me a little bit on it. Give me a moment to bring the program up."

Lady Penelope shifted from one foot to the other in a fit of impatience as she watched Gordon typing furiously on a panel situated in front of him.

Gordon stopped typing and stared at his handiwork for a few moments before speaking up. "Okay, John's tele-com – I'm getting clear readings – last coordinates indicate – hmm, his last position is only a few miles away from that fake distress call. Let's see – Scott's tele-com is reading coordinates of – wait this can't be right."

Penelope couldn't miss the frown on his face. "What is it, Gordon?"

Frustration marred his tone. "I wish John was here – the previous coordinates are out over open water, that's all I can tell from these readings. There's some sort of distortion preventing me from getting any further scans."

Jeff nodded. "FAB, Gordon. That'll be all for now – transmit the coordinates to the command and control center and I'll contact you later for further instructions."

"Keep me posted, dad. Thunderbird Five out."

Once the communication window closed, Jeff turned to her. "Lady Cassandra has them in two different places."

"Then we split up – she won't expect that."

That was one of the first ideas Jeff had, but he was concerned. "Penny, are you sure about this? I mean, think here – she sent these back to us for a reason."

She was already mentally preparing herself for the journey. "Right – she wants me to play her twisted game."

"She wants US to play her twisted game," Jeff corrected her. Leaning against the worktable, he stared at the ceiling. "I warned Scott when he threatened her that first time we encountered her. It amounted to a direct challenge and considering the circumstances, it sounds like she accepted."

Penelope readily agreed. "She took it as a personal challenge. Probably didn't anticipate John travelling back with him."

Jeff turned and looked her in the eyes. "Look, I need your help here. You've encountered her before, know her habits – would she truly separate them under these circumstances?"

After a moment of considering Jeff's question, Lady Penelope sighed heavily. "Yes. Considering what you told me about what Scott did, Lady Cassandra would want to exact revenge on the people she considers a direct threat. Scott would be the main focus and she would probably leave John's fate with her hired help."

He took a look at the tele-coms again. "So that means that she would be with Scott then."

Penelope shook her head and crossed her arms. He was right in that she knew Cassandra better than anyone, and there was one aspect he needed to face facts on. "Jeff, neither of them has much time – she will kill them or have them killed, all in the name of revenge."

* * *

The decisive tone of her voice didn't do him any favors. Jeff shook his head. Separating into two teams would be dangerous, but – "Okay, we'll split up. I'll take Virgil with me and go to the coordinates from John's tele-com. I'm sending Alan with you."

She started to protest. "Jeff, I have Parker with me-"

Jeff cut her off, determined to drive his point home. "And if it is as you say it is, Lady Cassandra is probably well guarded and fortified. In addition, we can't get a proper read on those coordinates anyway, and you know full well our scanning equipment is currently second to none. Alan can bring equipment in Thunderbird Four in case those coordinates are underwater. We'll join you as soon as we can, so keep in contact with Gordon so we can coordinate our positions."

* * *

Lady Penelope gave him a determined look. She was a professional first and foremost but for as long as she has known Jeff, he always had a plan and thought about the big picture. He was right about the underwater possibility and having more manpower would make it a little easier to move around.

Still, she couldn't miss the worried in his eyes. She touched his arm lightly. "FAB. I appreciate the help, Jeff. You and Virgil better leave now. I'll expect the three of you to meet up with us ASAP. Stay safe."

Jeff nodded. "You as well. I'll contact Gordon, Alan and Virgil and let them know of our plans."

* * *

_More soon,_

_Timeguardian_


End file.
